Category: LGBT

Intriguing photographs from sexologists’ archives suggest they could have helped people explore their gender identity and sexuality. Dr Jana Funkereflects on her experiences of discussing sexology and photography with visitors at Wellcome’s Institute of Sexology exhibition. By Dr. Jana Funke / 03.12.2015 Senior Lecturer in Medical Humanities University of Exeter n 1919, German-Jewish sexologist Magnus[…]

Two 18th-century women, Sarah Ponsonby and Eleanor Butler, are famous for their romantic friendship, which was then a concept helpful for lesbian couples hoping to avoid a scandal. By Sarah Bentley / 03.12.2018 Visitor Experience Assistant Wellcome Collection In her book, ‘The Ladies of Llangollen: A study in romantic friendship’, author Elizabeth Mavor sends the[…]

Bible, about 1280–90, Bologna, Italy. The J. Paul Getty Museum, Ms. Ludwig I 11, fol. 248v; National Coming Out Day (NCOD) Logo created and donated by Keith Haring to the Human Rights Campaign. Human sexuality and gender identity are complex topics, and our understanding of each is continually expanding and deepening. By Dr. Bryan C. Keene (left)[…]

In the 1950s, many psychiatrists thought that homosexuality could be reformed. Czech psychiatrist Kurt Freund found that it couldn’t – and his discoveries led to a change in the law. By (left-to-right) Dr. Charlie Williams, Dr. Sarah Marks, and Dr. Daniel Pick / 09.20.2018 Williams: Postdoctoral Researcher, Hidden Persuaders Project Marks: Postdoctoral Researcher, Hidden[…]

Magnus Hirschfeld, on the right, sits with his partner, Tao Li, at the fourth conference of the World League for Sexual Reform in 1932. / Wellcome Images Physician Magnus Hirschfeld advocated for those he called ‘sexual intermediaries.’ His activism began before World War I – and ended only when the Nazis came to power. By Dr. Elizabeth Heineman / 11.09.2018 Professor of[…]

Paris Gay Pride 1982 A selection of four films from the years of gay liberation from the 1970s and 1980s in France. 02.14.2017 Introduction How liberating was gay liberation in France? A selection of four films from the years of gay liberation from the 1970s and 1980s can show us how gay men were becoming[…]

During the medieval period the Muslim community was rather tolerating and accepting in this regard. By Muzaffar Bhatti / 02.23.2017 Graduate Student in History Royal Holloway, University of London Contrary to popular belief, Islam has not always had a strained relationship with the LGBT community. In fact, during the medieval period the Muslim community was[…]

Same-sex unions are an integral part of the long, complex and hotly contested history of marriage. Interview of Dr. Gary Ferguson by Dr. Katherine Harvey / 01.19.2017 Ferguson: Douglas Huntly Gordon Distinguished Professor, University of Virginia Harvey: Wellcome Trust Research Fellow, Birkbeck, University of London In Same-Sex Marriage in Renaissance Rome: Sexuality, Identity, and[…]

The uniqueness of Hijras lies not only in their existence beyond social structure but also in Indian society’s historical acceptance of that position. By Sibsankar Mal / 03.29.2018 PhD Candidate in Population Studies Sukumar Sengupta Mahavidyalaya (Keshpur) College Introduction A hijra named Geetu, dancing at a hair shaving ceremony in Delhi / Photo by Whitney[…]

Convictions under the Buggery Act 1533 were punishable by death / British Library, Public Domain Exploring three executions under the Buggery Act during the 1800s, looking at how they were reported in the media of the time. By Steven Dryden Broadcast Recordings Curator British Library The Buggery Act of 1533, passed by Parliament during the[…]

Elvert Barnes Photography/Flickr By Ian Lekus / 11.26.2015 How do I teach the history of HIV/AIDS to today’s students? I find myself pondering this question, trying to figure out how to convey the dramatic story of a catastrophic, culturally charged epidemic (one that has claimed nearly 40 million lives) to students for whom HIV has[…]

“By even considering this discriminatory order he has broken his promise to be a president for all Americans,” says Human Rights Campaign. (Photo: @HRC) ‘Nothing could be more un-American’ than order protecting those with a religious objection to same-sex marriage, transgender people, and reproductive rights. By Deirdre Fulton / 05.03.2017 Rights groups protested outside the[…]

By Peter Montgomery / 12.28.2016 U.S.-based Religious Right groups have a long track record of collaborating with their counterparts in other countries to restrict women’s health choices and make life harder and more dangerous for LGBT people around the world. This year was an especially active one in this global human rights struggle. U.S. Religious[…]

By Stephen D. Foster, Jr. / 12.18.2016 Conservatives apparently want a witch hunt in every government department. Earlier this month, Donald Trump’s transition team demanded that the Energy Department give them a list of names of employees who study climate change and the labs used to research it. It is assumed that Trump’s team wanted[…]

Pastor Rick Scarborough By Kyle Mantyla / 10.06.2016 Vision America’s Rick Scarborough appeared on the American Pastors Network’s “Stand In The Gap” radio program earlier this week to discuss his effort to encourage pastors to mobilize their congregations to vote and declared that, thanks to the Supreme Court’s marriage equality ruling last year, Christians are[…]

By John Prager / 09.20.2016 Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just kick bigots out of our country? Well, that’s exactly what happened when anti-gay Arizona pastor Stephen Anderson stopped by Botswana for a visit and decided to preach hate. Anderson’s road to Botswana was an eventful one, with the United Kingdom banning him from so[…]

“This is a huge victory for the state of Mississippi and the nation,” said ACLU of Mississippi executive director Jennifer Riley-Collins.(Photo: Todd Eytan/flickr/cc) By Andrea Germanos / 07.01.2016 A federal judge struck down Mississippi’s anti-LGBTQ bill hours before it was scheduled to go into effect on Friday, saying that it fails to “respect the equal[…]

Hillsborough County Commissioner Kevin Beckner helps raise the LGBT pride flag outside of the county center Wednesday. / Caitlin Johnston, Times From Steve Contorno at the Tampa Bay Times / 06.17.2016: A pride flag waving outside the Hillsborough County center was meant to be a sign of respect and remembrance for the victims of the shooting[…]

Photo by pixdeluxe / iStock. I want my son to have male role models, female role models, and to know that families can look like anything. I want him to have options that I never did. By Mariah MacCarthy / 06.16.2016 I want my son to know that families can look like anything. Families can be a[…]

Pastor Roger Jimenez, Verity Baptist Church From Angela Musallam at CBS Sacramento / 06.13.2016: A Sacramento Baptist preacher’s sermon praising attack on an Orlando nightclub that killed 50 people has the local LGBT community outraged. Recordings of the sermon by Pastor Roger Jimenez surfaced under the Verity Baptist Church’s YouTube account. “Are you sad that 50[…]

Orlando Eye Landmarks around the world have lit up with rainbow colors in support of the victims in the Orlando Pulse club shooting, their families, the LGBTQ community, and all Americans. Eiffel Tower Sydney Harbour Bridge 1 World Trade Center Spire Seattle Space Needle Rainbow Flag Half-Mast Minneapolis Lowry Avenue Bridge San Francisco City[…]

American Family Association official and radio host Sandy Rios By Brian Tashman / 05.25.2016 American Family Association official Sandy Rios spoke today with Andrea Lafferty of the Traditional Values Coalition about how the two Religious Right groups are fighting efforts in government and the business community to allow transgender people to access the facilities of[…]

By Matthew A. McIntosh / 05.16.2016 Brewminate Editor-in-Chief Franklin Graham, son to evangelist Billy Graham and heir to his empire, posted on Facebook yesterday about transgender rights and exhorted his followers to stand firm in their defense of bathrooms. Of course, he’s exalting them to “Godliness” and saying that they must contest as a unified[…]

Pastor David Reynolds, Cornerstone Bible Fellowship Church By Randa Morris / 05.15.2016 On May 9, Pastor David Reynolds, formerly of Cornerstone Bible Fellowship Church in Sherwood, Arkansas, was arrested on 70 counts of child pornography. According to the Sherwood Police Department, Reynolds’ arrest followed a lengthy investigation which began with a tip to the National[…]

WHNT.com By Brian Tashman / 05.09.2016 On Friday, Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore was suspended from his position after being charged with violating judicial ethics in his response to federal court rulings on same-sex marriage. Despite a ruling by a federal judge in Mobile making same-sex marriage legal in Alabama last year, and in the[…]

Seattle SEA-TAC Airport Transit / Wikimedia Commons By Matthew A. McIntosh / 04.30.2016 Brewminate Editor-in-Chief A man from North Carolina, Joshua Gitlin, was arrested by Seattle police after being caught by an 8-year-old boy’s father taking a picture of the boy in an adjacent stall in the bathroom by raising his phone above the stall.[…]

Harris County Public Library (Creative Commons) There’s currently a woman who wants to be selected to serve on the Texas State Board of Education (SBOE). Her name is Mary Lou Bruner , and she’s about as far-right in ideology as one could ever seem to imagine. She’s an ultra-right-wing “Christian” conservative who believes heavily in[…]

By Stephen D. Foster, Jr. / 04.24.2016 A Fox host actually debunked a conservative talking point by doing what a real journalist does best: research. An anti-LGBT conservative columnist appeared on Fox News Sunday to defend anti-LGBT laws that ban transgender people from using the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity. Ben Domenech argued[…]

Dr. Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics &amp; Religious Liberty Commission during the House Judiciary Committee hearing on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law subcommittee hearing on “The Ethical Imperative for Reform of our Immigration System”, July 14, 2010 in the Rayburn House Office Building. (Photo By Douglas Graham/Roll Call[…]

Tony Perkins, Fox News Screen Capture By Joe Clark / 04.19.2016 Family Research Council President Tony Perkins once again showcased his amazing dancing skills as he tapdanced around all logic and reason during an interview with Fernando Espuelas on the issue of religious freedom laws. Perkins was recently Espuelas’ guest on his Matter of Fact[…]